Need a job? Or a love life? Personal-marketing consultants can help you stand out from the crowd

Turns out I'm a Mini Cooper. By nearly unanimous vote, my friends, family and colleagues say that if I were a car, I'd be a Mini, a BMW Z5 or some other convertible roadster. Not to, er, toot my own horn, but that means people see me as small but bold, stylish and full of energy.

It also means that people connect with me on an emotional level--at least, so says William Arruda, creator of the 360Reach personal-branding questionnaire that was used to ask people how they view me, my strengths and weaknesses. Arruda is not some New Age self-help shaman. After...